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Iowa fair's food-ticket plan causes bellyaching

DES MOINES, Iowa -- A plan to create a cashless system to buy food at the Iowa State Fair has created an uproar that now has drawn in the state's governor. Fair officials on Tuesday announced that cash would

DES MOINES, Iowa -- A plan to create a cashless system to buy food at the Iowa State Fair has created an uproar that now has drawn in the state's governor.

Fair officials on Tuesday announced that cash would no longer be accepted at food concessions. Fairgoers would instead have to buy 50-cent tickets online or at more than 150 locations throughout the fairgrounds.

A blast of criticism quickly followed, including threats to boycott the fair. Nearly 83 percent of respondents opposed the plan, according to an informal Des Moines Register survey that had nearly 1,600 votes. Iowans and others left more than 670 comments on the Register's Facebook page and more than 380 on the Iowa State Fair's page.

Few of the comments gave the plan a thumbs up. On Wednesday, Gov. Terry Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds said fair officials should listen to those concerns.

Reynolds serves on the fair board in place of Branstad. She was not at the meeting when the board made the switch, said Jimmy Centers, spokesman for the governor's office.

"Though the governor and lieutenant governor understand the board members' intentions were good regarding the decision to move toward a ticket-based payment method, they believe the Iowa State Fair would be wise to listen to the concerns of fairgoers and Iowans before implementing such a large change in policy," Centers said in a statement.

Fair officials, in a statement, said the board will consider the governor's comments. The board wants to improve the integrity of its financial system, not harm the fair experience, the statement said.

"The Fair Board has been moved by the passion of our Fairgoers and their desire to preserve the traditions they embrace," the statement said. "Our Fairgoers, including our exhibitors and vendors, are the Fair's most important assets."

Fair officials expected some resistance, said Lori Chappell, the fair's spokeswoman. One of most significant benefits would be something not seen by fairgoers — managing cash between the fair and vendors, she said. Fair officials plan to do everything possible to minimize headaches like long lines, she said.

"Change can be challenging, so we knew there would be apprehension," Chappell said.

The stream of threats to boycott the fair continued Wednesday.

"It's now on my calendar — 'Not going to the Fair,'" wrote David Young on Facebook.

Vanessa de la Cerda of Des Moines said she won't attend this year's fair, which is Aug. 7-17. "It's going to be another line that we're going to have to wait in and there's always glitches in a new system, so I'll pass this year," she wrote in an email to the Register.

Scott Peters, 35, of Omaha said he wonders what will happen to the unused tickets. Fair officials said they would never expire, but Peters said he thinks few people would save them for future use.

"I think it's a fleecing of all the patrons," said Peters, who has attended the fair for the past 10 years with his wife and children.

Research by fair officials shows revenues have increased in other states that made the switch, said Chappell, the fair's spokeswoman. The Iowa State Fair had $21.1 million in revenue in 2012.

The fair is modeling its system after a similar program used in Texas.

The State Fair of Texas has used coupons since at least 1991, said Sue Gooding, the Texas fair's senior vice president for communication.

Gooding said she recalls an adjustment period of a few years. Fairgoers had to learn the system, and officials shifted the location of ticketing booths based on foot traffic, she said.

The public's response to the shift was muted, she said.

"There was no letter-writing campaign; the governor didn't get involved," she said.

One key benefit to using tickets is in accounting, she said. Using the coupons allows for a quicker and more accurate count of money. To count the money, coupons are placed on a scale and weighed, and money is distributed within 24 hours, Gooding said.

"It's a very clean process on both ends," Gooding said. "There's no question about how much a booth or ride generated, because it came straight back to us in the form of coupons."